Asia must shut backyard farms to halt bird flu: U.S.

Asia must shut backyard farms to halt bird flu: U.S.

Sambit Mohanty, Reuters/Singapore

Asian governments must provide financial incentives and shut down
as many backyard poultry farms as possible to halt the spread of
bird flu, a leading U.S. poultry industry official said.

Margaret Say, Southeast Asian director for the USA Poultry and
Egg Export Council, said while some governments were working hard
to fight the virus, others were "becoming a bit slack".

"We cannot control migratory birds but we can surely work hard
to close down as many backyard farms as possible," Say told
Reuters. "And we can do that only if backyard farmers are given
an alternative source of living -- some incentive to close down."

Bird flu has killed more than 60 people in Asia and infected
at least 123 since late 2003. In almost every case, the virus
appears to have been transmitted to humans through contact with
birds. Indonesia on Saturday confirmed its fifth bird flu death.

China has yet to report any human cases of bird flu from the
latest outbreaks but has slaughtered 6 million birds in a
northeastern region hit by the country's fourth outbreak in a
month.

In countries such as Indonesia, China, Thailand and Vietnam, a
lot of poultry is raised on small farms, which don't have
adequate bio-security measures in place, making them a breeding
ground for the virus.

The farms, for instance, don't have proper enclosures, making
it easy for the virus to be carried by migratory birds.

"Some countries have done better in keeping a lid on backyard
farms than others. The problem is that we are seeing a re-
emergency of the virus as people in certain regions are becoming
a bit slack once they don't see new cases for a couple of
months," Say said.

She said poultry consumption in Asia has not dropped by much
in Asia, despite growing fears, as governments have been
successful in educating people that well-cooked chicken was safe
to eat.

"We are not seeing a downtrend in poultry consumption so far.
For example, sales were buoyant in Indonesia during Ramadhan,"
Say added. "To prevent the threat from mounting, there is a need
for richer nations to help out the ones which don't have the
proper bio-security measures in place."

Grain markets have been on tenterhooks that the spread of the
virus would sharply cut poultry demand, which in turn would slash
the need for feed grains such as corn and soybeans.

But Say said the situation is unlikely to reduce grain imports
by bird flu-hit countries in Asia in the near term.

"If you look at all the big feed producers in the organized
sector they are all functioning normally. They are the ones who
use imported grains. It's not the backyard farms which use
imported grain. We might see a knee-jerk reaction in the market."

Say said Asian governments are unlikely to stockpile grains on
fears that shipments could be disrupted during a full blown flu
epidemic.

"Any kind of stockpiling would only send a negative signal to
the market and to their people that there is something severely
wrong. We also don't see that happening either, at least in the
near future," she said.